


conflict of interest

by imposterhuman



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Angst with a Happy Ending, Established Relationship, M/M, Oblivious Tony Stark, Rockstar Bucky Barnes, manager tony stark, sort of!, to a seriously concerning degree
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-13
Updated: 2020-08-13
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:42:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25883023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imposterhuman/pseuds/imposterhuman
Summary: If someone had asked Tony ten years ago where he’d end up, he definitely wouldn’t have said as the manager to one of the most successful rock bands in the industry. A different kind of manager, maybe, or a CEO like his father, but he’d never have guessed anything in the music industry. But his life had never followed the paths he expected it to. The Howling Commandos had been playing basements when he’d discovered them, but a combination of his management skills and their insane musical talent had catapulted them into sold out arenas.In truth, all Tony did was badger the right people into listening to the band and schedule their tours and appearances. They probably could have (and maybe should have) replaced him a long time ago with someone who knew what he was doing, but the band seemed to have adopted him as one of their own, so Tony was just going with it. There were worse jobs he could be doing.Plus, he’d miss the bassist.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark
Comments: 8
Kudos: 263





	conflict of interest

**Author's Note:**

> for au-gust day 13: rock band au
> 
> enjoy!!

If someone had asked Tony ten years ago where he’d end up, he definitely wouldn’t have said as the manager to one of the most successful rock bands in the industry. A different kind of manager, maybe, or a CEO like his father, but he’d never have guessed anything in the music industry. But his life had never followed the paths he expected it to. The Howling Commandos had been playing basements when he’d discovered them, but a combination of his management skills and their insane musical talent had catapulted them into sold out arenas. 

In truth, all Tony did was badger the right people into listening to the band and schedule their tours and appearances. They probably could have (and maybe should have) replaced him a long time ago with someone who knew what he was doing, but the band seemed to have adopted him as one of their own, so Tony was just going with it. There were worse jobs he could be doing.

Plus, he’d miss the bassist.

Bucky Barnes was the quintessential rock star, with long hair and heavy eyeliner around ice blue eyes. He had several piercings, a scruffy beard, and a penchant for leather, all things that made Tony weak in the knees. It was unfair how attractive he was, but apparently the universe was on Tony’s side sometimes: Tony-- dorky, shorter than average, and addicted to caffeine-- was somehow his type. 

They were a study in opposites, Tony knew, which was probably why their relationship was doomed to fail. Honestly,  _ relationship  _ was a strong word for what they had; in his less charitable moments, Tony was pretty sure Bucky only kept him around because he was convenient. Never mind that Tony had been absolutely gone on him for years; he’d take fuckbuddies, if that was all he could get. 

It was hard to suppress his feelings sometimes, like when Bucky would make him dinner and they’d dance around in the kitchen together, or when Bucky would try to teach him how to play bass and kiss him every time he got a chord right. Tony could almost forget that they weren’t actually dating, even though pretty much all of Bucky’s things had migrated to his apartment, and the man stayed over more often than not. It was just about scratching a mutual itch, that was all. 

Besides, were managers even allowed to date their clients? Tony might’ve been terribly unprofessional in every sense, but at least he could follow one simple no fraternization rule. Well. He could sort of follow the rule. Most of the time.

In his defense, Bucky had started it this time. 

“This is most definitely a conflict of interest,” Tony panted between kisses, pulling Bucky closer despite his protests. Bucky went willingly, pressing Tony against the wall with his body.

Bucky chuckled against his mouth. “I think we have the same interests, doll,” he teased. 

“I’m your  _ manager _ ,” Tony objected lamely. He made no move to stop Bucky as the man moved to biting at his neck. 

“I’d say you’re being a very effective manager right now,” Bucky purred, even though that was in no way a sexy sentence. His hands moved to Tony’s belt. Tony knew that if he let Bucky’s hands keep roaming, they’d be there for a long while.

“You can’t miss a show because you were making out with your booty call behind the building,” Tony said with finality, pushing away. “Come on, move it. If you’re late, I’ll never hear the end of it from Peggy and Steve.”

Bucky brushed a lock of hair out of Tony’s eyes. “Doll, I think we’re well past booty calls,” he said dryly. “We’ve been dating for four months, you can say boyfriend.”

“We absolutely have not,” Tony responded immediately. “Did you hit your head or something? Do we need to call off the show?”

“Ha ha, very funny,” Bucky made a face. “Just so you know, you’re terrible at jokes. Let me be the funny one; you can be the beautiful, smart one instead.”

Tony shook his head. “I’m not joking,” he said quietly. He was confused as all hell, like he was trying to put a puzzle together that was missing half its pieces. Now, Tony wasn’t exactly the best with social situations, but surely he’d have known if he’d been in a relationship for the past four months! “Bucky, we aren’t dating.”

Bucky must’ve seen something on his face, because his joking demeanor dropped completely. “I--”

They both startled when a loud noise-- microphone feedback-- cut through the silence. Mic check had started, ostensibly, which meant that Bucky was supposed to be on stage right then. Maybe all of this was just a pre-show hallucination, Tony mused. After the performance, they could go back to… whatever they were. 

“You’re going to be late for the show,” Tony pointed out meekly. Despite that, he didn’t want Bucky to leave. He wanted Bucky to explain what the actual fuck was going on, if he was being perfectly honest, because he was lost at sea.

“Fuck the show,” Bucky said viciously. “Tony, baby,  _ please  _ tell me you don’t think I’ve been stringing you around for months. Tell me you know I’m head over heels in love with you and have been for ages. We live together, for god’s sake!”

“Well, I know that  _ now _ ,” Tony huffed, crossing his arms. “How the hell was I supposed to know? You never said anything!”

“I…” Bucky deflated. He looked like a kicked puppy for a second, but the expression was quickly swept away and replaced with a sad sort of resignation. “I guess I didn’t.”

He was too kind; he didn’t point out that  _ Tony  _ hadn’t said anything, either. Guilt curdled in Tony’s chest, choking him slowly. Tony desperately wanted to fix this. He closed his eyes, tasting words on his tongue, and took a leap of faith.

“I think we both need to work on our communication skills in the future,” he offered Bucky a half-smile. “That is, if you still want me?”

Bucky looked like he wasn’t breathing. “What are you saying?”

“Would you like to go on a date with me?” asked Tony. He smiled tentatively. “Because I’ve been wanting to go on a date with you for months now, and now that I know it’s an option, and I don’t want to let it pass me by.”

“This is one hell of a conflict of interest,” Bucky smirked and pulled Tony in by the collar, which was answer enough. 

(Bucky  _ did  _ end up being late for the show, but even Peggy couldn’t find it in herself to yell at him for it, not when she saw how happy he and Tony were. However, she did make them fill out fraternization forms in triplicate, even though Tony protested that as their manager, that was technically his job. Just for that, she gave him an extra form.)

**Author's Note:**

> comments and kudos make me happy :))
> 
> come talk to me on tumblr [@imposter-human](https://imposter-human.tumblr.com/)


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